| Later in the
day, we meet up with our makeshift family of international friends from
the boat trip. Walking Luang Prabang's dusty streets with new family members
Almut, Paul and Dan, we search for a suitable street-side café for
our Thanksgiving feast. Almut, a young German traveling by herself, and
Paul, a 60-year-old retiree from Spain and the new father figure of our
group, both concede to the American tradition with enthusiasm. Dan, it
turns out, is not only from the East Coast of the U.S., but also graduated
from the same small college that my friends and I attended. A 39-year-old
lawyer from Massachusetts, he is taking the long way home after three years
of working for a corporate firm in Japan. As English-speakers traveling
alone in foreign lands the proposal for a group dinner with other Westerners
holds certain appeal.
Finding a place
to eat is more difficult than we anticipate, but not for lack of choices.
The lingering French-colonial influence and growing Westernization encourage
Laotians to move away from local markets into the promise of the restaurant
business. Some choose to serve only Western food and seem to suffer because
of it. As we explore several appealing cafés, I am bothered by what
we find. Though it is not the peak of tourist season, we are still surprised
to discover one empty dining area after another on such a beautiful evening.
Several times we are greeted with broad smiles from groups of bored hostesses
and waiters who seem to pour out of the beautifully ornamented interiors.
For one reason or another, after inspecting the menus we move on, leaving
the hope-filled establishments as empty as before.
Laotian families
renovate the larger front sections of their homes, transforming them into
restaurants in an attempt to draw tourists' money. I empathize with these
people, trying so hard in their own homes to imitate foreign food and atmosphere
for foreign customers, when that is what many of us are here to escape.
Their valiant attempts only amount to serving the occasional Western dish
to fickle tourists. I shudder when I realize we are playing the part. Realizing
we’re not going to find a stuffed turkey, we return to an open-air Laotian
café and the hostess greets us again with a smile as if she knew
we’d come back.
The seven of
us sit around three bamboo tables, joined together on the porch at the
edge of the interior’s warm glow. I open the first bottle of wine discovered
earlier in one of the many pharmacy/souvenir shop/restaurants common to
the area. Lost on the shelf for years among Asian Ibuprofen tablets, Laos
t-shirts and 50’s-style Coke bottles I found the tannin-rich treasure abandoned
by some unsuspecting French colonist--?-three bottles of French Bordeaux
from 1993. Wine like this comes with a hefty price tag here, so I seized
the opportunity and bought the lot for 70,000 kip ($9USD).
A glass of
wine goes down smoothly in celebration before I muster up the courage to
order my appetizer?Tam Mak-Njum ped, a Lao-style papaya salad. Unripe papaya
diced with unpeeled prawns and marinated with fish sauce, limejuice, sugar
and peanuts could sound frightening or appetizing, depending on where you
are from. Feeling adventurous, I order the Lao-style version of this seemingly
harmless mix prepared ‘how the locals eat it,’ or ped?meaning spicy. Grind
half a dozen fresh red chilies into the mix, sprinkle with concentrated
chili oil, and the venture takes on the characteristics of a dish my mother
hoped I would never see at Thanksgiving dinner.
Amidst increasingly
effusive toasts and multi-lingual banter drifting by from other tables,
I find Vermont sneaking back into my head. Warm fires and spiced cider
are worlds away though. A floppy-eared mutt with fleas now replaces my
graying golden retriever curled faithfully at my feet during every holiday
meal. My dinner of fried Mekong fish stares up at me with its one bulging
eye and toothy grin. Eating a fish from the river that almost swallowed
me, I smile back at it in victory, happy to forgo the turkey this year.
On the Banks
of the Mekong
Voted a UNESCO
World Heritage Site in 1995, Luang Prabang is well worth the drama it often
requires to reach. Travelers wanting to cross from the northeastern Thai
border must opt for the two-day longboat journey ($11USD) in order to reach
Luang Prabang 110 miles down river, for there are no direct roads. Tourists
wanting to forgo the Mekong trip will have to travel north from the Laos
capital of Vientiane by bus ($6USD)?a more civilized option, but don’t
expect to get any sleep on them. Or, there is the sawngthaew, a pickup
truck-turned-taxi, for more harrowing local trips. If you fail to convince
yourself the journey is part of the whole experience (which it is), there
is an international airport outside of town serviced by Lao Aviation.
Once you’re
there
We stayed
just outside of town at the comfortable and newly-renovated Ban Lao Guesthouse,
near the corner of Thanon Bunkhong and Thanon Latsavong, Luang Prabang,
(856-071) 252-078, where decent sized double rooms with mosquito nets run
about $10-16USD a night, depending on size and private or shared bath.
The hot showers and morning coffee are appreciated in this much cooler
mountainous region. Bicycles are available for rent at the front desk and
make for a pleasant way of seeing the area’s historic temples. Watch out
for the manager’s grinning teenage son?he’s very persistent about sharing
his rice wine.
In the middle
of the historic temple district is Pa Pai Guesthouse, north of Thanon Phothisalat
opposite Wat Pa Pai, phone and fax (856-071) 212-752. Rooms in the historic
French colonial house are cheap, divided by bamboo-thatched walls where
doubles with shared baths are a mere $6USD. Though far from plush, the
guesthouse is out on the peninsula that divides the Mekong from the Nam
Khan River and daily life along the river makes for an intriguing walk
after breakfast.
Where to
eat
Thanksgiving
dinner was celebrated at Le Saladier, Thanon Phothisalat, where a wide
variety of Laotian and French food is available. Fried Mekong fish ($2-3USD,
depending on size) is surprisingly good, and watch out for the chilies
if you order the papaya salad ($1.50USD). Tables set on an outside veranda
a few steps up from the street make a nice spot for people watching. Keep
an eye on the waitresses also?they tried to drag me to the local discotheque
every night I walked by their restaurant.
The Luang
Prabang Bakery, also on Thanon Phothisalat, makes excellent European pastries
($.50-1.50USD), has egg sandwiches on baguettes, and carries an assortment
of other tasty snacks at decent prices.
For authentic
Laotian cuisine, try Malee Lao Food, on Thanon Phu Wao, where the local
Tom Ponh is an excellent choice. The creamy purée of eggplant and
fish is poured over roast water buffalo or deer, topped with red chilies,
green onion and mint ($2.50USD). To satisfy particular tastes, order the
Laotian noodle soup ($1USD) and add an array of your own ingredients including
chopped chilies and mint, cabbage, fish sauce and shrimp paste.
What to
do
The central
marketplace, Talat Dala, located at the intersection of Thanon Kitsalat
and Thanon Latsavong, features local handicrafts, and a wide variety of
local foods and textiles. Plan on bargaining if you want reasonable prices.
More than 60
Buddhist wats are spread throughout Luang Prabang and most are accessible
from the town center by foot. One of the more ornate temples is Wat Xieng
Thong, occupied by Laotian royalty until 1975, located just off Thanon
Khaem Khong near the northern tip of the peninsula.
Roughly 18
miles south of town is Kuang Si Falls, reachable via sawngthaew. The multi-level
waterfall cascades over limestone cliffs into refreshing aqua-colored pools.
Dotting the surrounding area is an immense cave system requiring a flashlight,
descent shoes and a certain amount of coordination.
**Food, lodging
and transportation costs vary in Laos according to the time of year, and
a steady rise in prices may have influenced some areas, while others may
have gone out of business.**
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